Carmakers renew calls for recharge revolution, as grim sales figures loom

(EurActiv, 23 Jan 2020) Some of the EU’s most powerful auto players called once again on Wednesday (22 January) for a mass rollout of recharging points and refuelling stations for fuels like hydrogen, as the industry offered up more clues as to how it intends to lessen its climate impact.

The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has published a 10-point masterplan outlining how it thinks carmakers can help implement the European Commission’s new all-encompassing Green Deal.

As the representative of 16 major Europe-based marques, including Ferrari, Renault and Volkswagen, ACEA is keen to set out its stall for the decade, especially given that new forecasts say that a six-year-long period of car sale growth should come to an end this year.

“At the very time when our industry is massively stepping up investments in zero-emission vehicles, the market is set to contract – not only in the EU but also globally – so the transition to carbon neutrality needs to be very well managed by policymakers,” said group president Michael Manley.

In December, EU countries agreed on a plan that targets net-zero emissions by 2050 and are expected to legally commit to legislation in June this year.

Chief among ACEA’s calls to regulators is the need for a “dense network of charging points and refuelling stations”, which the group has dubbed “one of the single most important enabling conditions for achieving carbon neutrality”.

Industry and clean-mobility advocates generally agree that the only way to spark investment in new facilities is to revise the EU’s existing rules on alternative fuels (AFID) and set targets for member states to follow.

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EurActiv, 23 Jan 2020: Carmakers renew calls for recharge revolution, as grim sales figures loom